2016 Conference Session Descriptions, Day 2

Handouts for all sessions will be linked to each session description once they are available. Printed copies of the handouts will not be available at the conference if posted here.

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Thursday, March 10, 2016

Breakout Sessions 9:15 a.m.-10:30 a.m.

Life in the Workforce

Presented by Derek and Dylan Volk
Dylan Volk is 24 years old and has held nearly 40 jobs! Derek Volk is an employer of 85 people including several with Autism Spectrum Disorder. This presentation will include the experiences and life journey of a young man trying to make it in the workforce, a dad struggling to help him, and an employer trying to make a difference.

Evidence Based Practices for Early Intervention: IFSPs to EBPPresented by Ann Sam, Ph.D. and Ann Cox, Ph.D.
Behavioral intervention literature is constantly advancing. The National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder (NPDC) identified 27 evidence-based practices (EBPs) through a review of the literature (2014). Participants will learn how to select EBPs to address IFSP/IEP goals. Identified EBPs for early intervention will be reviewed and two free, online, self-learning resources (AFIRM and ASD Toddler Initiative) will be demonstrated.

Presented by Patrick McGreevy, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. McGreevy will first propose that behavioral intervention for a specific child or adult, whether it is funded by insurance, Medicaid, or public schools, begin with a discussion of end goals for that learner and that progress toward those goals be reported on a regular basis. He will then lead a discussion on this topic. * This session is BCBA focused. 1.5 CEs for BCBAs & BCaBAs

Building Blocks of Virginia’s Waivers for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities Presented by Connie Cochran. M.Ed

This session will cover how the restructured, amended waivers provide a framework to fund and expand flexible services in the community. In addition, will address key elements of the waivers; how individuals will access waivers; single waiting list; and implementation over the next three years.

Building an Environment for Positive Behavior ChangePresented by Lisa Falke, M.S., BCBA, LBA
In national surveys, teachers report that they receive the least amount of training in classroom management and that addressing challenging behavior in the classroom consumes a large amount of their time. This often leads to frustrated teachers and unhappy students. But there is hope! There is significant research to demonstrate the effectiveness of a tiered-system of positive school-wide support to help inform teachers, reduce problem behavior and increase pro-social behavior, school-wide. These systems capitalize on what we know about the relationship between environment and behavior to create an environment that builds and supports pro-social, desirable behaviors. This presentation will explore the essential components of an effective school-wide positive behavior support implementation, the potential barriers to implementation that can arise, and offer solutions to those barriers. The essential role of different staff in the school building will be discussed and participants will have the opportunity to problem-solve barriers they have encountered putting school-wide or classroom-wide initiatives into effect.

The Concurrent Operants Assessment*Presented by Sean Casey, Ph.D., BCBA
The Concurrent Operants Assessment (COA) helps to determine the function of an individual’s choice-making behaviors. Studies suggest that it correlates more positively than indirect assessments (such as behavior checklists) to conclusive functional analysis results. Functional analysis can be challenging to conduct if individuals with higher-level skills fail to display the inappropriate behaviors during the assessment. In the presenter’s study, the results of COAs were compared to the results of brief and extended functional analyses for a variety of children with high incidence disabilities and in multiple settings. The results and implications of the COA as an augmentative procedure when functional analyses are inconclusive or not feasible (e.g., behavior is too dangerous to reinforce) will be discussed. * This session is BCBA focused. 1.5 CEs for BCBAs & BCaBAs

Assistive Technology with AdultsPresented by Tony Gentry, Ph.D.,OTR/L
PDAs, tablets and smartphones are rapidly evolving consumer technologies that offer rich opportunities for supporting everyday tasks and vocations. Drawing on a decade of research into the use of these tools as assistive technology for cognition, this presentation will include discussion of: (1) the strengths and weaknesses of consumer handhelds as cognitive-behavioral aids, (2) onboard apps for task support, (3) add-on apps for task management, behavioral support, way-finding, and healthy living, and (4) strategies for leveraging these tools for people with cognitive-behavioral challenges.

After this session, attendees will be able to:

Compare and contrast PDAs, tablets, and smartphones that may be used as cognitive aids.

Discuss apps and strategies for time and task management.

Discuss behavioral management, way-finding, and health applications for people with cognitive-behavioral challenges.

Presented by Didi Zaryczny, Public Safety Training Coordinator - Commonwealth Autism
Being aware of potential safety risks within the home, community, workplace, and internet that may affect individuals with autism across the lifespan could help to prevent a tragic event from occurring. This session will provide an overview of potential safety risks and resources available.

The Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s Guidelines for Responsible Conduct and the Disciplinary Standards were replaced on January 1, 2016 with the Professional and Ethical Compliance Code. Additionally, the Behavior Analysts Certification has clarified a number of issues pertaining to supervision of trainees, Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts, and Registered Behavioral Technicians. This session will address changes that come with the switch to the new Compliance Code and other changes made by the Certification board, as well as requirements of the Virginia Board of Medicine.* This session is BCBA focused. 1.5 CEs for BCBAs & BCaBAs (This session counts towards the supervision continuing education requirement)

The state of Iowa hired their first BCBA to systematically address the challenging behavior concerns in the state. The BCBA engaged several stakeholders in a multi-year project to accomplish one primary goal: to eliminate false positives (i.e., staff who did not possess the skills of expertise to adequately address challenging behavior) from developing Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) using substandard or non-existent FBA (Functional Behavioral Assessment) data. This talk will focus on the assessment and training of Iowa’s Area Education Agency’s (AEA) Challenging Behavior Specialist (CBS) teams to possess the needed expertise to appropriately assess (i.e., using FBA’s) and in turn develop BIPs that helped children with challenging behavior to reduce those behaviors so that education can be delivered more often in the least restrictive environment (i.e., the regular classroom setting). The training goals (i.e., dependent measures) and the training provided (i.e., independent variables) will be detailed. The present and future of the project in terms of generalization and maintenance and how this project can serve as a template for a larger systems approach to addressing challenging behavior problems will be also discussed. * This session is BCBA focused. 1.5 CEs for BCBA & BCaBA